Snowmobile with pivotable rear snow flap

ABSTRACT

A snowmobile includes a chassis having a generally reduced length and a snow flap pivotally attached to the rear portion of the chassis, above the track system. The track system extends rearwardly beyond the chassis, and the snow flap shields the track system above and behind from spraying snow. The snow flap is linked to the track system so that as the track system moves through a range of travel relative to the chassis, the snow flap pivots relative to the chassis with the track system. This configuration prevents damaging contact between the tread and the undersurface of the snow flap and/or the chassis. The reduced length of the chassis decreases the weight of the snowmobile and the polar moment of inertia, thereby improving turning performance. A bumper extends from the snow flap and can be used to lift the rear of the snowmobile more easily.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of priority to U.S. application Ser.No. 60/252,404, filed Nov. 22, 2000, the contents of which are hereinincorporated by reference. This application is a continuation-in-part ofU.S. application Ser. No. 09/472,134, filed Dec. 23, 1999, the contentsof which are incorporated herein by reference. This Application and U.S.application Ser. No. 09/472,134 claim priority to U.S. application Ser.No. 60/167,614 filed Nov. 26, 1999, which is also incorporated herein byreference. This application and U.S. application Ser. No. 09/472,134also claim priority to Canadian Patent Application No. 2,256,944, filedon Dec. 23, 1998, which also is incorporated herein by reference. Thisapplication is also a continuation-in-part of U.S. application Ser. No.09/472,133, filed Dec. 23, 1999 now abandoned, the entire content ofwhich is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates in general to snowmobiles and, more particularly,to a snowmobile with a movable rear snow flap.

2. Background of the Invention

In general, a snowmobile has a central frame or chassis on or aroundwhich the various components of the snowmobile are assembled. Typically,a pair of skis are mounted at the front portion of the chassis and aninternal combustion engine drives a ground-engaging track that iscentrally mounted under the chassis.

In conventional snowmobiles, the track is provided under the chassis insuch a manner that the entire length of the track is located beneath the“tunnel” formed by the chassis, as illustrated in FIG. 1. A snow guardtypically is provided at the rear of the chassis to prevent snow thatthe track engages from spraying excessively in an upward or rearwarddirection.

In contrast, in the snowmobile disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser.No. 60/167,614, the length of the chassis is reduced and a rear portionof the track extends beyond the rear end of the chassis. As discussed inthat provisional patent application, such a configuration improves themaneuverability and overall performance of the sled. In particular,shortening the chassis reduces the overall weight of the snowmobile and,hence, reduces the polar moment of inertia, thereby allowing thesnowmobile to turn more quickly. Shortening the chassis, however,exposes part of the rear portion of the track and leaves that rearportion uncovered, which may result in greater amounts of snow beingsplashed or sprayed upwardly and/or rearwardly than is desired.

Furthermore, when the entirety of the track system is positioned underthe chassis, as in conventional snowmobiles, the chassis limits therange of “travel” of the rear suspension system. In particular, it hasbeen observed that as a conventional snowmobile moves over uneventerrain, as the track system moves to the upper limit of the range oftravel or the rear suspension system, the rotating track may strike theundersurface of the chassis.

It is generally believed that a rear suspension system with a greaterrange of movement performs better than a rear suspension system with amore limited range of movement. Previously, attempts to increase therange of movement of the rear suspension system have been made either bychanging the tilt angle of the chassis or by rearranging the componentsof the rear suspension system.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to overcome theselimitations or drawbacks of snowmobiles according to the prior art.

In one aspect, the invention features a snowmobile in which the chassisis shorter than in conventional snowmobiles and does not extend over theentire track. Rather, the track extends longitudinally rearwardly beyondthe rear end of the chassis. This reduces the weight of the snowmobileand hence, because the length of the chassis is reduced, the polarmoment of inertia of the snowmobile. This reduction in weight and polarmoment of inertia improves maneuverability and overall performance ofthe snowmobile.

Because the end of the chassis does not shield the track system fromspraying snow up and/or rearwardly, a pivotal snow flap is providedabove and extending beyond the rear portion of the track to prevent orsubstantially reduce the amount of snow sprayed by the tread as thesnowmobile moves through the snow. The snow flap is pivotally connectedat its forward end to the rear end of the chassis and is caused to pivotby virtue of its connection to the track system by means of linkagestruts. The linkage struts are pivotally connected to a portion of thesnow flap and to the track system. This arrangement causes the snow flapto pivot relative to the chassis as the track system moves through itsrange of travel and keeps the track shielded. Additionally, because thesnow flap moves with the rear suspension travel, the tread will notcontact the snow flap and/or the chassis, and hence will not abrade anddegrade those components.

In another aspect, the invention features a handle-shaped bumper that isconnected to the snow flap. Because the snow flap is connected to thetrack system, it is easier to lift the rear of the snowmobile whennecessary to do so, e.g., when lifting the snowmobile out of a smallgully. This is because the lifting action acts virtually directly on thetrack system via the bumper (which is connected to it), whereas in theprior art, it was customary to lift through a bumper mounted at the rearof the chassis and a certain degree of lifting motion was lost as thechassis rose relative to the track system (as the “play” in thesuspension system was being taken up) before the tread ever began to belifted from the ground. Additionally, lifting the rear end of thesnowmobile according to the invention is easier with the bumperconnected to the snow flap than the case where the bumper extends fromthe rear of the chassis because the lower position requires a personlifting the rear of the snowmobile to bend from the knees to reach it,whereas the prior art arrangements only required the person to bend fromthe waist to reach the bumper, and it is easier to lift “with the legs”than “with the back.”

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features of the invention will be explained withreference to the following drawings,in which like reference charactersrepresent like features, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic, side elevation view illustrating a snowmobileaccording to the prior art;

FIGS. 2-6 are diagrammatic side elevation, front perspective, sideelevation, front, and plan views, respectively, of a snowmobileaccording to the invention;

FIG. 7 is a rear perspective view of a snowmobile according to theinvention;

FIG. 8 is a close-up side view of the snowmobile shown in FIG. 4,highlighting features of the pivotable snow flap and track system;

FIGS. 9 and 10 are diagrammatic side views similar to FIG. 8,illustrating the rear portion of the chassis and the range of travel ofthe track system and associated pivoting of the snow flap;

FIG. 11 is a rear perspective view illustrating the chassis and oneembodiment of a bumper member (part of the pivotable snow flap)according to the invention;

FIG. 12 is a rear view of the chassis assembly shown in FIG. 9,partially in section, taken along line 12—12;

FIG. 13A is an assembly view of one embodiment of a pivotable snow flapaccording to the invention, and FIG. 13B is a section view taken alongline 13B—13B;

FIG. 14A is an assembly view of another embodiment of a pivotable snowflap according to the invention, and FIG. 14B is a section view takenalong line 14B—14B;

FIGS. 15-18 are rear three-quarter, side, bottom, and bottom, rear,three-quarter perspective views of a preferred embodiment of a pivotablesnow flap according to the invention;

FIG. 19 is a diagrammatic, rear perspective view illustrating theconnection between the bumper and the skirt members in the preferredembodiments of the flap illustrated in FIGS. 15-18;

FIG. 20 is a section view as seen along line 20—20 in FIG. 15 (as wellas in FIG. 19);

FIG. 21 is a half-section view taken along line 21—21 in FIG. 20;

FIG. 22 is a half-section view taken along line 22—22 in FIG. 20; and

FIGS. 23A, 23B, 24A and 24B are views similar to FIGS. 13A, 13B, 14A,and 14B illustrating further embodiments of the pivotable snow flapaccording to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

The overall configuration of a snowmobile 10 according to the inventionis shown in FIGS. 2-6. In general, the snowmobile 10 includes analuminum chassis 11 around which the various snowmobile components areassembled. The snowmobile has a front suspension system 12 located at aforward portion of the chassis to support the forward portion of thesnowmobile 10 on the ground. The front suspension 12 includes a pair ofskis 14 which are positioned at the laterally outermost end portions ofsuspension arms 16, which suspension arms have, e.g., shock absorbingstruts to absorb vibrations as the snowmobile 10 passes over uneventerrain. The skis 14 and the suspension arms 16 are constructed so thatthe skis 14 can be pivoted laterally to steer the snowmobile 10, e.g.,by turning handlebars 18. Although a front suspension system 12 havingtwo skis 14 is shown, it is contemplated that a snowmobile having asingle, relatively wide central ski might also be constructed inaccordance with the invention, as might be an all-terrain vehicle whichhas a wheel or wheels instead of the skis and/or the track system.

A propulsion-providing track system 20 is laterally centrally mountedunder the chassis and extends rearward past the rear end of the chassis11. The track system 20 has a belt-type tread or track 58 which rotatesaround the periphery of the track system 20 to propel the snowmobile 10through the snow. An internal combustion engine (not shown), located atthe forward portion of the chassis 11 and enclosed within fairings 22,drives the tread 58 via a constant variable transmission system, as isknown in the art.

A cushioned seat 24 is provided on the upper, mid- to rear-portion ofthe chassis 11, and a fiberglass tail fairing 26 is provided behind theseat 24. The snowmobile operator sits on the seat 24, with his or herfeet positioned on footrests 32 on the chassis 11 (see FIGS. 2 and 6).

The snowmobile 10 further has a movable snow flap 36 that is pivotallyconnected to and extends from the rearmost portion of the chassis 11.The snow flap 36 is positioned above the track system 20 and extendslongitudinally rearwardly beyond the end of the track system 20 so as tooverlie the track 20. This configuration prevents or decreases theamount of snow that is sprayed up from the tread 58 when the snowmobile10 travels through the snow and provides a safety covering over theportion of the track 20 extending beyond the end of the chassis 11.

The snow flap 36 includes an upper snow guard 38 and a snow deflector40. The snow deflector 40 is attached to and extends down from the rearend of the snow guard 38 far enough to substantially shield the rearmostportion of the track system 20 and to prevent or substantially decreasethe amount of snow that is sprayed rearwardly from the tread 58. Thesnow flap 36 further has skirt flanges 42 (see, e.g., FIG. 8) extendingdown below the sides of the snow guard 38 and extending substantiallyalong the length of the snow guard 38, with one skirt flange 42 oneither side of the snow guard 38. The snow flap 36 is positioned inrelatively close, generally conformal relation to the rear, upperportion of the track 20 so that rather than being thrown behind thetread 58 and falling to the ground (or out from under the sides of theflap 42 when the snowmobile 10 is turning), snow which is “kicked up” bythe tread 58 falls back onto and remains on the tread 58. Thus, snow iscarried by the rotating tread 58 along the top portion of the track 20.(See FIGS. 12 and 16, described below.) This, in turn, helps cool thesnow-cooled radiator 98 extending along the underside of the chassis 11,thereby enhancing engine cooling.

A handle-shaped bumper 44 extends rearwardly and slightly upwardly fromthe rear of the snow flap 36, approximately where the snow deflector 40joins the snow guard 38. Details of the construction and assembly of thevarious components of the snow flap 36 are described in greater detailbelow.

As illustrated in greater detail in FIGS. 7-10, the track system 20 ismounted beneath a rear portion of the chassis 11 by means of asuspension system consisting of a number of struts 50 a-d. Various onesof the struts 50 a-d are longitudinally compressible, consisting of, forexample, spring-loaded and/or hydraulic shock absorbing members. Inparticular, the suspension system includes a single, spring-loaded frontshock 50 a (which is optional); a single, spring-loaded rear shock 50 b;front suspension arm 50 c, which is rigid; and rear suspension arm 50 d,which is also rigid. The front shock 50 a is pivotally attached atattachment points 52 and 54 on the front arm 50 c and on the slide rail56 of the track system 20, respectively; the rear shock 50 b ispivotally attached at attachment points 60 and 62 on the rear arm 50 dand on the slide rail 56, respectively; the front suspension arm 50 c ispivotally attached at attachment points 64 and 66 within the chassis andon the slide rail 56, respectively; and the rear suspension arm 50 d ispivotally attached at attachment points 68 and 70 on the chassis 11 andon the slide rail 56, respectively.

The track system 20 is designed to move through a range of motionrelative to the chassis 11, as illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10. The tracksystem 20 will move with respect to the chassis 11 through a variety oftypes of motion, viz., both vertically and pivotally. The precise mannerin which the track system 20 moves through its range of travel withrespect to the chassis 11 will depend on the particular configurationand arrangement of the suspension system components and preferably willbe tailored to the anticipated riding conditions under which thesnowmobile 10 will be used. Thus, the track suspension system, and theresultant range of travel of the track system 20, allows the snowmobile10 to be operated over varying terrain and to absorb impacts, e.g., whentraveling over such varying terrain.

As further illustrated in FIGS. 9 and 10, and as described in greaterdetail below, the snow flap 36 is connected to the rear end 74 of thechassis so as to pivot vertically (i.e., about a horizontally extendingaxis) relative to the chassis 11. The upper ends of a pair of linkagestruts 76 (one on either side of the snowmobile 10) are pivotallyconnected to the snow flap 36 at attachment points 78, and the lowerends of linkage struts 76 are pivotally connected to the track system atattachment points 80. Preferably, the attachment points 80 are formed atthe outer ends of axle 82 around which rear tread guide/support wheels84 rotate as the track 58 rotates around the periphery of the tracksystem 20. Thus, the snow flap 36 is connected to, so as to move with,the rear portion of the track system 20, and the snow flap 36 will pivotrelative to the chassis 11 as the track system 20 moves through itsrange of travel.

In this configuration, the flap 36 covers the portion of the track 20extending beyond the end of the chassis 11, the flap 36 moves with and“mirrors” movements of the track system 20, and the track 58 does notcontact (and hence abrade) the snow flap 36 when the track system 20reaches the limit of its range of travel (e.g., when riding across“mogols”). At the same time, because the snow flap 36 moves with thetrack system 20, it remains in a shielding position above and extendingbehind the track system 20 and thus prevents or substantially reducesthe amount of snow that is sprayed up and/or rearwardly by the track 58.Furthermore, the shorter chassis 11 (relative to conventional, prior artsnowmobiles) has a smaller polar moment of inertia. Hence, a snowmobileaccording to the invention has improved turning performance.

As illustrated in FIGS. 11-24B, the snow flap 36 may be constructed in anumber of different configurations. A first embodiment is illustrated inFIGS. 11-13B. In this embodiment, the bumper 44 is generally U-shapedand formed from extruded aluminum tubing and is itself pivotallyattached to the rear portion 74 of the chassis 11. A journal sleeve 73at the forward end of each arm 44 a, 44 b is pivotally connected betweenlugs 75 extending from the rear end 74 of the chassis 11, e.g., by pins77. Linkage struts 76 are pivotally connected to the arms 44 a and 44 b,e.g., by pins 88 passing through apertures in the arms 44 a and 44 b, asshown in FIG. 12, with aluminum sleeves 87 surrounding them. Bolts 72pass through apertures in the lower ends of the linkage struts 76 andare threaded into bores 92 extending inward from the ends of axle 94 onwhich rear tread guide support wheels 84 rotate to secure the linkagestruts 76 (and hence connect the flap member 36) to the track system 20.

As further illustrated in FIG. 12, certain components of the snowmobile10 preferably are located within the inverted U-shaped tunnel region 96formed by the chassis 11. For example, FIG. 12 illustrates the radiator98. The radiator 98 extends longitudinally along the length of theunderside of the upper panel 100 of the chassis 11. The radiator 98 haslongitudinally extending internal passages 102 through which coolant(such as ethylene glycol) passes and cooling vanes 104. As snow spraysup from the track 58 and is carried into the tunnel region 96 of thechassis 11 as described above, it absorbs heat from the radiator 98 andhelps to cool the engine.

As illustrated in FIGS. 13A and 13B, the bumper 44 is “sandwiched”between the snow guard 38 and a skirt member 41, which preferably isformed as a generally U-shaped extruded channel, from sheet metal suchas aluminum, or other suitable material such as molded plastic,reinforced plastic, or other structurally comparable material. The snowguard 38 and skirt member 41 are secured together, sandwiching thebumper 44, e.g., by rivets passing through the arms 44 a and 44 b or byother suitable means. Cut-outs 39 a and 39 b in the snow guard 38 fitover the arms 44 a and 44 b, respectively, and facilitate a secure fitbetween the components. The leading edge flange portion 40′ of the snowdeflector 40 fits over the trailing edge 43 of the skirt member 41,beneath the rear, handle portion 44 c of the bumper 44, and is securedto the trailing edge 43 of the skirt member 41 by means, e.g., of rivetsor other suitable fasteners.

In an alternative embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 14A and 14B, the skirtand the snow guard are integrally formed as a single, contiguous unit136 preferably from injection-molded thermoplastic resin. The unit 136has skirt flanges 142 that are integral with the snow guard 138. Theunit 136 fits down over the arms 44 a and 44 b of the bumper 44, withthe arms 44 a and 44 b of the bumper 44 fitting within cut-outs 139 aand 139 b in the rear edge of the snow guard portion 138 of the unit 136in a similar fashion to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 13A and 13B. Across-member 145, which may be formed from any rigid material such asaluminum or a thermoplastic material, extends between the arms 44 a and44 b of at the rear of the bumper 44, where the arms 44 a and 44 b jointhe base portion of the U. The cross-member 145 provides an attachmentpoint for the leading edge flange portion 40′ of the snow deflector 40,which is secured to the cross-member 145 using rivets or other suitablefasteners.

A more preferred embodiment of the snow flap 236 is illustrated in FIGS.15-22. In this embodiment of the snow flap 236, the snow guard 238 isformed as a generally hollow, blow-molded member. Preferably, it is madefrom high density polyethylene (HDPE) or other smooth, low-frictionmaterial so as to prevent snow from accumulating on the undersurface ofthe snow guard 238 (thereby permitting the snow to slide forward alongthe underside of the snow guard 238 so that it may be carried forward tohelp cool the radiator 98, as described above).

The snow guard 238 has apertures 239 a and 239 b passing through it at atrailing portion thereof, from an upper surface to a lower surface. Theapertures conform generally to the profile of an oblique section (i.e.,a section taken at an angle relative to the longitudinal axis) of eachof the bumper arms 244 a and 244 b. During assembly, the forward ends ofthe bumper arms 244 a and 244 b are passed through the apertures 239 aand 239 b, respectively, and the bumper 244 is rotated (handle portion244 c downwardly) such that the arms 244 a and 244 b fit snugly withinchannels 246 a and 246 b that are formed into the undersurface of thesnow guard 238.

As illustrated in FIG. 19 (with the snow guard 238 not shown), left andright skirt members 241 a and 241 b are securely fastened to theundersides of the bumper arms 244 a and 244 b, respectively. The skirtmembers 241 a and 241 b are formed from extruded aluminum, with hollow,channel-shaped reinforcing/connection ribs 245 a and 245 b extendinglongitudinally along the length of each of the skirt members 241 a and241 b, respectively. As shown in FIG. 21, each reinforcing/connectionrib 245 a and 245 b includes a protector member 245 c that protects thesnow guard 238 from abrasion by the track 58.

As shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, a pair of apertures 255 are formed throughthe bottom wall of each of the bumper arms 244 a and 244 b, where thearms of the bumper 244 (which is formed from a hollow, tubular aluminumextrusion) are slightly flattened. AK series threaded inserts 257available from AVK Industrial Products in Valencia, Calif., areinstalled within the interior portions of the bumper arms throughapertures 255, as illustrated in FIG. 20. The skirt members 241 a and241 b are then secured to the undersurfaces of the bumper arms 244 a and244 b, respectively, by means of bolts (not shown) which are passedthrough apertures 259 and 261 formed, respectively, in the lower andupper walls of the ribs 245 a and 245 b and which are screwed into theinserts 257. Thus, the snow guard 238 is secured between the bumpermember 244 and the skirt members 241 a and 241 b at its rear portion byvirtue of the bumper arms 244 a and 244 b passing through the apertures239 a and 239 b. Additionally, it is preferable to secure the snow guard238 to the forward portion of each of the skirt members 241 a and 241 bby means of self-tapping screws, which are threaded upwardly throughapertures 263 formed in the forward portions of the skirt members 241 aand 241 b (see FIG. 19) and which are threaded up into bosses 271 thatare internally molded in the interior portion of the snow guard 238, asillustrated in FIG. 20. The bosses 271 are located within the confinesof the snow guard 238 approximately at the location of points A in FIG.17.

As illustrated in FIG. 19, a tubular aluminum journaling sleeve 247 iswelded to the front end of each rib 245 a and 245 b. The journalingsleeves 247 fit between lugs 75 extending from the rear of the upperportion of the chassis 11, as shown in FIG. 11 and 22. The pins 77,passing through the journaling sleeves, pivotally connect the flap 236to the rear of the chassis 11. Bushings 79 and 81 are provided toprotect the interior surfaces of the journaling sleeves 247 and theexterior surfaces of the pins 77.

As illustrated in FIG. 19, the forward ends of the skirt members 241 aand 241 b are “cut back” slightly to provide ample room around thejournaling sleeves 247 to insure smooth pivoting of the flap assembly236. Furthermore, the journaling sleeves 247 fit within a trough- orchannel-shaped recess 285 that is formed at and extends along the widthof the front portion of the snow guard 238, as illustrated in FIGS. 17,18, and 20. As shown in FIG. 17, the lugs 75 pass through slots 289,such that the front end of the snow guard 238 is able to fit down overthe pivoting surfaces, which enhances safety by covering the pivotpoints and pivotal surfaces.

As further shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, recesses 291 are formed in thesides of the snow guard 238. As illustrated in FIGS. 20 and 21, theupper ends of the linkage struts 76 are pivotally connected to the flap236 via pins 88, which pass through apertures formed in the sidewalls ofthe ribs 245 a and 245 b. A spacer bushing 293 is provided on theouter-facing side of each rib and keeps the linkage struts 76 properlypositioned laterally. The spacer bushings 293 and the bushings 295positioned within the apertures in the upper ends of the linkage struts76 permit a slight amount of side-to-side rotation of the linkage strutsrelative to the pins 88, such that the assembly is able to toleratelateral movement. The upper ends of the linkage struts 76 fit within therecesses 291, and there is sufficient clearance to permit the full rangeof rotation of the linkage struts 76 relative to the flap 236 as theflap 236 pivots relative to the chassis 11 as illustrated in FIGS. 9 and10.

As illustrated in FIGS. 15 and 20, the snow deflector 40 is attached tothe trailing edge 243 of the snow guard 238, e.g., by rivets 99, whichmay be located within pockets or small wells 47 formed at the forwardedge of the snow deflector 40. Screw-on tops 49 are used to cover thewells 47. The snow deflector 40 is made from hard rubber or SynPrene(IT481), which is a thermoplastic elastomer designed for long-termoutdoor usage and available from Synergistics.

Another configuration of the snow flap 336 is illustrated in FIGS. 23Aand 23B. In this embodiment, the skirt member 341 is formed fromextruded aluminum or sheet metal which is bent to form the downwardlyextending skirt flanges 342 as well as trailing edge 343 to which thesnow deflector 40 is attached by means of leading edge flange portion40′. Forward pivotal connection journaling sleeves 348 are supported bystand-offs 350, which are fastened (e.g., bolted or riveted) at theforward end of the skirt member 341. The journaling sleeves 348 are usedto pivotally connect the snow flap 336 to the rear of the chassis 11 inthe same manner as the configurations described above. A second pair ofrear journaling sleeves 352 are supported by stand-offs 354, which arefastened to a rear portion of the upper surface of the skirt member 341in the same manner as the forward stand-offs 350.

The snow deflector 40 is secured to the skirt member 341 by attachmentof the leading edge flange portion 40′ to the trailing edge 343 of theskirt member 341, as described above. The bumper 344 is securelyattached to the upper surface of the skirt member 341, with the forwardends of the arms 344 a and 344 b secured between the stand-offs 354 asshown. The snow guard 338 is secured to the skirt member 341 in thisembodiment in the same fashion as in the embodiment shown in FIGS. 13Aand 13B, with cutouts 339 a and 339 b fitting over the bumper arms 344 aand 344 b.

Finally, in another embodiment shown in FIGS. 24A and 24B, the snow flap436 has an integral snow guard/bumper/skirt unit to which the snowdeflector 40 is attached, as described above. The integral unit 436 hasan upper snow guard portion 438 and integral, depending skirt flanges442, similarly to the embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 14A and 14B.Unlike that embodiment, the bumper 444 is also integrally molded intothe unit, with stiffening “arm” portions 444 a and 444 b extending alongthe undersurface of the snow guard portion 438 and the handle portion444 c of the bumper 244 adjoining on the upper or dorsal surface of thesnow guard 438. Such configuration can be manufactured by, for example,blow molding thermoplastic resin or by using other conventional moldingor shaping operations.

It will be appreciated that the above-described embodiments are intendedto illustrate the invention and that various modifications to anddepartures therefrom will occur to those having skill in the art. Anyand all such modifications are deemed to be within the scope of thefollowing claims.

We claim:
 1. A snowmobile, comprising: a chassis; a handlebar disposedon said chassis; a ski support system mounted at a forward portion ofsaid chassis and including at least two skis operatively connected tosaid handelebar to provide steering control of said snowmobile; apropulsion-providing track system having an endless track, said tracksystem being movably mounted under a rear portion of said chassis andconfigured to move through a range of travel with respect to saidchassis; and a snow flap disposed above said track system, said snowflap being connected to said track system and pivotally connected tosaid rear portion of said chassis so as to pivot relative to saidchassis, moving with said track system as said track system movesthrough said range of travel, wherein said snow flap comprises ahandle-forming bumper member extending rearwardly from a rear portion ofsaid snow flap and wherein said snow flap is pivotally connected to saidrear portion of said chassis by a forward portion of said handle-formingbumper member.
 2. The snowmobile of claim 1, wherein said handle-formingbumper member is generally U-shaped and wherein said forward portion ofsaid handle-forming bumper member comprises arms of said U-shaped bumpermember.
 3. The snowmobile of claim 1, wherein said snow flap isconnected to said track system by linkage struts pivotally connected tosaid snow flap via said handle-forming bumper member.
 4. The snowmobileof claim 1, wherein said snow flap comprises an upper snow guard portionattached to a top of said bumper member.
 5. The snowmobile of claim 4,wherein said upper snow guard portion has skirt members depending fromsides thereof.
 6. A snowmobile, comprising: a chassis; a handlebardisposed on said chassis; a ski support system mounted at a forwardportion of said chassis and inluding at least two skis operativelyconnected to said handlebar to provide steering control of saidsnowmobile; a propulsion-providing track system having an endless track,said track system being movably mounted under a rear portion of saidchassis and configured to move through a range of travel with respect tosaid chassis; and a snow flap disposed above said track system, saidsnow flap being connected to said track system and pivotally connectedto said rear portion of said chassis so as to pivot relative to saidchassis, moving with said track system as said track system movesthrough said range of travel, wherein said snow flap comprises an uppersnow guard attached to a skirt member and a bumper member attached toand extending rearwardly from said skirt member, and wherein said snowflap is pivotally connected to said rear portion of said chassis by aforward portion of said skirt member.
 7. The snowmobile of claim 6,wherein said snow flap comprises a handle-shaped bumper member and saidbumper member is generally U-shaped; arms of said bumper member passthrough a rear portion of said upper snow guard and are secured to saidskirt member, said skirt member is comprised of left and right skirtmember elements attached to bottoms of said arms; said snow flap beingpivotally connected to said rear portion of said chassis by forward endsof said left and right skirt member elements.
 8. The snowmobile of claim7, wherein said left and right skirt member elements each havelongitudinally extending ribs formed thereon and wherein said snow flapis connected to said track system by linkage struts pivotally connectedto said snow flap via said longitudinally extending ribs.
 9. Thesnowmobile of claim 6, wherein said snow flap comprises a handle-shapedbumper member and said bumper member is generally U-shaped; said skirtmember comprises a channel-shaped member extending from front to back ofsaid snow flap; arms of said bumper member are secured to a top surfaceof said skirt member; said upper snow guard overlies said arms and isattached to the top surface of said skirt member; and said skirt memberis pivotally connected to said rear portion of said chassis by firstpivotal connection members located at a forward portion of said skirtmember.
 10. The snowmobile of claim 9, wherein second pivotal connectionmembers are located at a rear portion of said skirt member and whereinsaid snow flap is connected to said track system by linkage strutspivotally connected to said snow flap via said second pivotal connectionmembers.
 11. The snowmobile of claim 8, wherein each rib includes aprotector member.